Attention parents and caregivers – the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) expects to make an announcement soon about popular "baby slings," saying that they can pose a suffocation risk to babies.

So far the agency hasn't named specific brands or cited specific incidents, but Consumer Reports has said that the "C-like position" can cause the baby's head to flop forward, chin-to-chest, restricting the child's ability to breathe. Other concerns include infants falling out of some slings and the potential for a baby to suffocate into a parent's chest or belly.

Keep checking back – we'll keep you updated on the latest developments and will post the official CPSC announcement once it arrives.

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Imagine returning home one day to find your locks changed, your home damaged, your utility wires cut, and your pet missing. This is precisely what happened in a case being handled by one of my partners, Attorney Michael Rosenzweig.

Our client, Angela M. Iannelli of Hampton, found a notice on her door announcing that her house had been repossessed by Bank of America. The only problem was that she hadn't defaulted on her mortgage nor had she received any notification that a foreclosure was approaching.

Please check out these links below from the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette and the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review to find out how this happened and how Bank of America responded – it may surprise you.

Hampton Woman Seeks Damages From Bank in Mistaken ID Case

Woman Says Bank of America Wrongly Repossessed Home

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Apparently Pittsburgh is planning to start enforcing its sidewalk clearing ordinance again this week. Pittsburghers were lucky in February -- officials decided to suspend the ordinance after the first heavy snowfall. But it's a new month and the grace period granted by officials is now over.

So, remember to clear the sidewalks outside your home or you'll receive a citation, followed by a $25 fine if you still don't shovel your walks. And check out my website for more information about who's responsible for clearing snow and ice from sidewalks.

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A couple days ago, I blogged about pothole season and the problems it's causing for Pittsburgh drivers. While there's no immediate remedy for the dips and dents in our streets, there's a new tool out there to help Pittsburghers report potholes to the city government.

iBurgh is an application for smart phones, like the iPhone and the Droid, that allows users to take pictures of potholes and send their photos directly to Pittsburgh's 311 complaint system. Submissions are tagged with GPS data to pinpoint the exact location. Users then receive a tracking number to follow the progress of their complaint.

With new technology like iBurgh, hopefully Pittsburgh residents can minimize the risk of car accidents caused by potholes. And even if you don't have a smart phone, you can still submit your pothole complaints the old fashioned way by calling 412-255-CITY.

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The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette has good article out today about the frustrating potholes that spring up in Allegheny County around this time of the year. In fact, potholes are so common in the late winter/early spring that some Pittsburghers call this time of year "Pothole Season."

I can't say I blame them – I've lost plenty of tires this winter thanks to potholes. One bad dip in the road took out both of my left tires at the same time, while a different pothole snuck up on my car at night and left me with another flat to fix.

I'll be back here in a couple days to tell you about a new technology that the city of Pittsburgh is using to identify potholes. In the meantime, check out my website's resources on potholes as well as the Post-Gazette article, featuring Attorney Rick Rosenthal, our managing partner here at Edgar Snyder & Associates.

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If you or someone close to you suffers from asthma, then you might be interested in an article I found on USATODAY.com. The Food and Drug Administration has issued a warning against long-term use of the drugs Advair, Symbicort, Foradil, and Serevent because they may actually cause users' asthma to get worse.

For more information, check out our website's page on risky asthma drugs, as well as USA TODAY's "FDA issues warning on 4 common asthma drugs."

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By now, most of us are familiar with the Toyota news in the headlines – the recalls, faulty gas pedals, sliding floor mats, malfunctioning brakes, and deadly accidents. But what isn't talked about as often is what happens to Toyota now. CNN has a good article explaining the punishment the automaker might receive, and why it probably won't get any federal penalties at all.

In 2000, the TREAD act – Transportation Recall Enhancement, Accountability and Documentation – was enacted. Under this law, automakers face toughened civil and criminal penalties for not promptly reporting safety defects to federal regulators. According to TREAD, a manufacturer has five business days from the time it finds what it believes to be a safety problem to report that problem to federal regulators. If it fails to do so, the company can be fined up to $16.4 million.

However, the article says that the largest fine ever imposed was against General Motors in 2004 – for only $1 million. Why isn't TREAD more heavily enforced? CNN says the main reason is that the five days an automaker has to report a problem begins the day the company comes to believe there is a safety issue. If the company says they never believed the problem to be safety-related, they're not obligated to report it.

In Toyota's case, for example, the manufacturer says it doesn't believe Prius's brake problems to be a safety issue, which can be enough to get them off the hook. In addition, experts say that all the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration really cares about is that manufacturers recall cars and fix them. Since Toyota has done this, the agency may not want to engage in a lengthy legal battle.

It may surprise you that so little is done in instances where consumers' safety is put at such great risk. This is why I'm so proud of the work that my law firm does. Oftentimes, the very laws that are supposed to protect consumers are used against them, and we make it our top priority to help those who've been injured overcome roadblocks to getting justice.

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When you're in a car accident, your first reaction is probably to get out and check for damage. Keep in mind, though, that the danger isn't over just because your car has stopped moving, especially if you're on a highway.

Each year, about 16% of pedestrian traffic fatalities in the USA occur on freeways, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. Over 700 pedestrians lost their lives on highways in 2008.

For example, in January, two women on an Atlanta highway were killed by a truck as they assessed damage from a fender-bender. Just weeks before that, a 26-year-old woman in Atlanta was killed trying to cross the road after an accident on Interstate 285. A father and son were struck and killed on Interstate 81 in western Virginia after stopping to help another car that was stuck in the snow. The list of pedestrians killed on highways begs the question: what should you do after an accident?

According to a spokesperson from AAA, here's the answer:

• Get the vehicle safely off of the roadway and as far away from traffic as you can.
• Stay inside the vehicle because it provides a layer of protection around you. Getting out makes you more susceptible to injury.
• Call for help as soon as the car is out of traffic. Most states have a telephone number posted on highway signs that stranded motorists can call.
• If the vehicle is stuck in active travel lanes, drivers should activate their flashers, exit the vehicle, and try to reach a safer location on foot. Never stand near moving traffic but instead get as far from the roadway as possible. Standing behind a barrier on the side of the road is one option.

Even though the natural reaction after an accident is to get out and inspect your vehicle, please think of your safety first and worry about your vehicle once you are out of harm's way.

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